The Postcard From Italy by Angela Petch
Published by Bookouture
Release date: March 16, 2022
Wow! Just Wow! To quote character Suzannah’s words when she describes a special Italian setting. What a creative way to explore your own relative’s past as this novel was inspired by Ms Petch’s own uncle and his experiences in the war as a rear gunner. In real life he did not survive but what if he had? Angela has woven a magical story around a ‘what if’ scenario that captured my attention from the beginning and carried me on an exhilarating journey across time, place and hearts.
A mystery surfaces of a hidden postcard found by Suzannah behind her failing grandmother Elsie’s dressing table that leaves her all at sea and curious of its story. The picture is an Italian stone farmhouse and it has a strange message with a post date from World War II years. Did her grandmother have a secret love? This person is marked with an uncertain identity in both past and present timelines which gives us much to think about. Who really is the pilot that has fallen from the sky and landed in Puglia, Italy? We follow Suzannah on her journey to find the missing pieces from the past to restore a puzzle in the present, all the while grieving the loss of her beloved father.
The world building is phenomenal in this novel. The author has certainly done her homework. I felt as if I had visited Italy and it certainly left me wanting to go there even more. Italy’s history and culture are finely spun into the story’s fabric giving us a glittering, explosive palette of garden, sky and sea colours that shape the atmosphere exquisitely. The plot and moods were beautifully rendered through clearly defined images, character speeches and actions. The dual timelines were both engrossing and the transition between them, seamless.
What a journey we are taken on through the hearts of these characters that we come to care about (even those that annoy us). Having a family connection to this story, I believe has given the author an extra benefit. Also, her own interest in the topic of the effects of war on people’s lives is clearly visible making us feel this story is passionate, genuine and straight from the heart. What a delivery! It is a novel I will never forget. I felt my heart soaking and breaking in the family chaos but also drenched and at peace in the setting’s wonder and profound beauty. I enjoyed this imaginative journey to a world where people get a second chance and where love eventually reigns supreme. It is also a story about finding your way home, where you can be yourself, as in a place not necessarily where you were born but where the long branches of ancestral memory extend and surface unexpectedly. Brilliant work, Ms Petch!
5 Glorious Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️for whisking me away to Italy and to the lives of those deeply affected by the war but who have a chance to regain a place in the world and in the hearts of those who truly love them. Yes, I highly recommend this beautiful novel, The Post Card From Italy.
Thanks to Bookouture and Netgalley for a review copy.
